Need help in deciding if I should buy iPhone 4

[Fieldmarshall45]

Since 2007 I've owned the original iphone. I was going to upgrade to the 3gs, however when I found out the iphone 4 was coming out I decided to wait. Now...

I'm debating if I should make that upgrade. I think it's a great phone, but I don't see the point in buying something that has a flaw. Due to this I've researched other phones and have recently been impressed by the Samsung Captivate. I can honestly say it was like using an iPhone. The screen was great, very responsive, bright etc..It also feels very sturdy when holding it.

So I have now found myself in this dilemma, do I buy iPhone 4 or the captivate? I need some suggestions. Any mac users out there using an Android phone? My biggest concern is backing up the phone to my iMac. Can it be done?

Regarding iPhone 4 users, does a case really stop antenna issue? Will the bars drop if my right pinky lays over the gap? Also, I tried reproducing the problem in my local Apple store (san diego) and couldn't do it. I've also read reports of other people in San Diego having trouble reproducing loss of bars/dropped calls. Is it possible that San Diego has better coverage, and the instant I take my iPhone 4 to another city/location I'll experience these problems?

I'm currently thinking I should try the iPhone first, and if the antenna problem exists, take it back and switch to the captivate. What do you think...smart move?

Thanks

 

[Makaveliarts]

Buy it... You have 30 days to return it with no restocking fee. See if the Antenna problem gets in the way of your day to day usage.

 

[Ferris23]

Get the iphone 4. It's "flaw" is so minor and easily avoidable. It's the best package on the market and I have been using mine without an issue since day one.


You will not find a cell phone with no flaws

As an example, Evo has terrible battery, so to get respectable battery life you have to tweak the OS, disable functionality, monitor tasks running, be tethered to a charger or carry an extra battery. To me that's worse than avoiding a small 2mm clearly visible black seam.


I also considered the Captivate, let me tell you after reading about that phone and trying it out for a day, it has far more "flaws" than the iPhone 4 will ever have.


http://androidforums.com/samsung-ca...ues-you-having-not-having-your-captivate.html

http://androidforums.com/samsung-captivate/128368-anyone-having-reception-issues.html

http://androidforums.com/samsung-captivate/130114-phone-shutting-off-randomly.html

The screen pales in comparison to iPhone 4 even though from afar it looks nice. It's a nice phone with a beautiful screen, but it's not an Iphone 4 by any stretch. It's very pixelated and the colors are very saturated and way off.

The whole antenna issue was a overblown. Be aware of it, but don't let it ruin the chance to use this amazing phone. Not to mention if it's a problem for you, just return it.

But yeah, the Captivate has signal issues when held, terrible GPS issues, random shut downs, horrible lag, sub par battery life contrary to reviews etc etc.

No thanks.

 

[Chunkycat]

You needlessly worry too much. Get the 4 if you have problems with it take it back. Good luck!

 

[whsbuss]

Samsung is preparing a fix for the GPS issue on the Captivate. After playing with it at the AT&T store I'm not crazy about the black Samsung themes for their apps. iPhone is a better experience.

 

[Ferris23]

Samsung is preparing a fix for the GPS issue on the Captivate. After playing with it at the AT&T store I'm not crazy about the black Samsung themes for their apps. iPhone is a better experience.

Where did you read that? Last I heard they have been planning a fix for a month but still nothing.

 

[whsbuss]

Where did you read that? Last I heard they have been planning a fix for a month but still nothing.

Got that from my neighbor who got the captivate on Sunday. He called AT&T support and that is what they told him. Check out www.androidforums.com and read through the Captivate forum. There's also a quick/temp fix to get the GPS signal to lock in for a period of time.

 

[Fieldmarshall45]

Interesting. Wasn't familiar with these issues on the captivate.

One question I forgot to address, maybe not the best place for it but possibly someone out there knows. If I buy iPhone 4, return it and switch to captivate only to find out I liked the iPhone 4 better, could I purchase another iPhone 4?

Wish there was a 30 day trial/test run for each Would make things a lot easier, playing with them in the store doesn't cut it.

 

[Ferris23]

Got that from my neighbor who got the captivate on Sunday. He called AT&T support and that is what they told him. Check out www.androidforums.com and read through the Captivate forum. There's also a quick/temp fix to get the GPS signal to lock in for a period of time.

Yeah I've been over there quite a bit, that fix seems to be hit or miss for some. Hopefully there is a fix coming soon though. Samsung has never been known to offer great support for their phones.

 

[Ferris23]

Interesting. Wasn't familiar with these issues on the captivate.

One question I forgot to address, maybe not the best place for it but possibly someone out there knows. If I buy iPhone 4, return it and switch to captivate only to find out I liked the iPhone 4 better, could I purchase another iPhone 4?

Wish there was a 30 day trial/test run for each Would make things a lot easier, playing with them in the store doesn't cut it.

No. I asked the same thing. I have invested a lot of time in researching the Captivate. I was very close to switching just to try something different, not because of any problems with my iphone 4. I think it would be a cool phone to have in conjunction with iPhone 4, but from my experience with it, and reading about it and it's issues, there's no way in hell I'd trade my iPhone 4 full time for it. Also when you compare the two phones side by side, it becomes obvious how much more accuracy, clarity and detail the iPhone 4 has over the Captivate. The Captivate has a very bright, saturated and high contrast screen, but it fails miserable at detail and text, and overall clarity. It's very grainy looking, and little things kill it like when you scroll on a web page, images get distorted. To my eye anyway.

Once you return a phone once, that's it, at least through AT&T.

Seriously though, the antenna thing is overblown. Like I said before, it would be a shame to miss out on this phone without trying it just because of what you read, because in reality it's really not a big problem as long as you are aware that in low signal areas, it's best to avoid touching that spot for too long. Very simple, even easier if you add a case to the mix, but not necessary.

 

[whsbuss]

Interesting. Wasn't familiar with these issues on the captivate.

One question I forgot to address, maybe not the best place for it but possibly someone out there knows. If I buy iPhone 4, return it and switch to captivate only to find out I liked the iPhone 4 better, could I purchase another iPhone 4?

Wish there was a 30 day trial/test run for each Would make things a lot easier, playing with them in the store doesn't cut it.

Not sure about what AT&T will do. But check the android forums to get a sense of user's experience. Talk of degraded battery usage, signal reception, and GPS top the list.

 

[Mliii]

All I can go by is my own personal experience and that of my daughter and niece who also have iPhone 4s. It's a GREAT phone. I'm not saying that the problems some have experienced aren't real, but the 3 of us have not had the issues reported.
The user interface is great and very intuitive. It's blazingly fast, and the available apps are incredible in their variety and scope.
Are there some annoyances that I wish Apple would deal with? Yes. I wish you could customize MMS sounds, for example. There are some other relatively minor user interface issues that I wish had more customization available. But all in all, I LOVE the phone.

 

[anpecota]

I say to buy it because there's really no risk. They are giving FREE bumpers that will supposedly fix the problem. But according to the press conference of the 16th, it's only bothering a small percentage of people. So there isn't mush to worry about. But I bet you'll love it.

 

[eawmp1]

Do your research, make a decision, and stick with it. You seem to be having "the grass is greener on the other side" issues. If you don't like the iPhone, take it back. But like a duped girlfriend don't expect AT&T to take you back if you have "returner's remorse".

 

[Fieldmarshall45]

The user interface is great and very intuitive. It's blazingly fast, and the available apps are incredible in their variety and scope.
Are there some annoyances that I wish Apple would deal with? Yes. I wish you could customize MMS sounds, for example. There are some other relatively minor user interface issues that I wish had more customization available. But all in all, I LOVE the phone.

While this is true, I feel you could also describe the Captivate in this manner (reason for my consideration). Customization isn't a big issue for me, I may jailbreak the iPhone 4 anyway (if I decide to keep it). However after discovering these issues regarding the captivate, I'm feeling I should at least give iPhone 4 a shot.

Still hoping to hear any responses from people in San Diego?

I tried reproducing the problem in my local Apple store (san diego) and couldn't do it. I've also read reports of other people in San Diego having trouble reproducing loss of bars/dropped calls. Is it possible that San Diego has better coverage, and the instant I take my iPhone 4 to another city/location I'll experience these problems?

 

[Polo5]

Buy it... You have 30 days to return it with no restocking fee. See if the Antenna problem gets in the way of your day to day usage.

I would suggest the same thing... if you like your iPhone 2G you will love the new iPhone...

 

[whsbuss]

Do your research, make a decision, and stick with it. You seem to be having "the grass is greener on the other side" issues. If you don't like the iPhone, take it back. But like a duped girlfriend don't expect AT&T to take you back if you have "returner's remorse".

I agree with that. What I told my brother (who can upgrade in a few weeks and coming from a blackberry 9000) is to have a plan in place..... wait to see if the new blackberry 9800 slider is releasing in August, get the IP4 and try it out for the 30-day return period; if not happy or having problems with the IP4, return it for the new blackberry or get the bold 9700.

Nothing is perfect.

 

[Ferris23]

The bottom line here is that no phone is perfect, which is what Steve Jobs also said and it's very true.

I look at that fact, then think about whos hands would I rather be in when dealing with problems. Apples or Samsungs. I think the decision is obvious when you just look at the quality of support Apple offers over that of Samsung.

I can go to any local Apple store and have a problem resolved, I can call Apple Care and have a problem resolved, I know with Apple my updates will be fast and regular. With Android you really have no idea what you're going to get. So yeah while the Captivate will get 2.2, no one knows if it will get the almost released 3.0. It doesn't matter if Google releases it, you then have to wait on Samsung to incorporate their (tacky) UI and then you wait for AT&T to release it. I just find that annoying, I want the latest and greatest and I enjoy the unified environment that iOS brings to the table.

I REALLY wanted to love the Captivate like I said, I wanted to try something different, but different is not always better. Usually it's the opposite.

 

[wirelessmacuser]

I own & use both an iPhone 4 and a Captivate, each on their own dedicated line.*

I'm not like most users on this forum that only have one phone they use daily. Nor do I believe anyone who only uses the iPhone 4 to be qualified to claim it's the "Best Smartphone"

There is no perfect phone, and there is no best phone... Period! There is only the phone _ you_ find best for you.*

Also the reason nearly everyone on this forum are all wrong about Android is because they're comparing it to the radically different iPhone. These two phones use different operating systems and simply cannot be fairly compared.*

The real question is what features do you want in a smartphone. Then decide which phone is for you.*

The _danger_ is people that are Apple fanboys, they make up lies about the competition as though they are experts, when they have no clue. Here's an example of a lie made up by one poster above:
"But yeah, the Captivate has signal issues when held, terrible GPS issues, random shut downs, horrible lag, sub par battery life contrary to reviews etc etc."

The "problems" cited above simply don't exist. I know, I own one.*

You'll notice I'm not bashing the iPhone. I'm a huge Apple enthusiast. I've posted about the problems I've experienced with mine, but I've never bashed the iPhone 4. I simply report my experiences so Apple can hear from it's owners. After all it's a fact that they read forums, blogs @ such to see how their products are doing.*

 

[Ferris23]

The "problems" cited above simply don't exist. I know, I own one.*

lol That's really funny actually. So because you own one, and don't have a problem, they don't exist?

No.


So all the people citing their problems on numerous Android forums are just making it up and they are out to get the Captivate? Did you even bother to read the links I posted about battery issues, GPS issues, signal issues, random shut downs, lag?



The problems are real and like all problems, they don't effect every user. What you say is just as absurd as someone who says that because they have an iPhone 4 with no problems, that no problems exist with the iPhone 4.

You're the same dude who told me that it must have been a bad phone I had that gave me reception issues as soon as I held it, clearly that's not the case as many videos on YouTube and users on forums have proven.


Check out how well your problem free Captivate did on this guys test:

The Samsung Captivate (Galaxy S) on the other hand dropped its bars faster than any other phone tested.

http://www.technobuffalo.com/blog/mobile-devices/iphone-death-grip-tested-on-7-new-handsets

It's great you have no issues, but don't pretend like this phone isn't having it's fair share of problems.

I made a lie up? Why don't you go tell that to people in the Captivate forum where I got that info

http://androidforums.com/samsung-ca...ues-you-having-not-having-your-captivate.html

http://androidforums.com/samsung-captivate/128368-anyone-having-reception-issues.html

http://androidforums.com/samsung-captivate/130114-phone-shutting-off-randomly.html


http://androidforums.com/samsung-ca...brates-returns-home-screen-automatically.html


I can search your posts about the Captivate, you act like the very fan boy you talk about with it and preface your fan boy antics by saying you own both, big deal, you still ignore that the phone has issues.

 

[wirelessmacuser]

No. *I asked the same thing. *I have invested a lot of time in researching the Captivate. I was very close to switching just to try something different, not because of any problems with my iphone 4. I think it would be a cool phone to have in conjunction with iPhone 4, but from my experience with it, and reading about it and it's issues, there's no way in hell I'd trade my iPhone 4 full time for it. *Also when you compare the two phones side by side, it becomes obvious how much more accuracy, clarity and detail the iPhone 4 has over the Captivate. *The Captivate has a very bright, saturated and high contrast screen, but it fails miserable at detail and text, and overall clarity. *It's very grainy looking, and little things kill it like when you scroll on a web page, images get distorted. *

There's a big difference between reading others opinions, and actually owning a Captivate.*

Since I own & use both an iPhone 4 & and an iPhone I can offer the real differences. Especially since I don't claim one is better than the other, just different. These are both excellent phones.

Display: it's not possible to accurately compare these two in the store. Why? Because they come preset at different levels of brightness with the iPhone cranked up higher. Most AT&T reps don't even know how to increase brightness on Android phones.*

In my real life testing the two are very close to each other. Bright & clear, the major difference is the larger size of the Captivate's display.*

The Android forums say: ......

Android forums are like any other forum. Filled with impatient users who refuse to spend the time to _learn_ the *Android OS. Android is not the same as the iPhone OS. If you're not willing to learn something new it's easy to condemn it. Personally, I invested the time to learn it, and the result is I have _ no_ problems with Android.*

Once you return a phone once, that's it, at least through AT&T.

This is wrong. As a long time AT&T customer who buys four or more new phones each year, I can buy & exchange for the same or different model as many times as I want.*

Don't believe it? Do your own research. It's easy just go to any carriers site. It's all explained there.*

 

[Fieldmarshall45]

From some of the info I've looked at, it appears the captivate can also have loss of reception depending on how you hold it, similar to ip4. (http://www.technobuffalo.com/blog/mobile-devices/iphone-death-grip-tested-on-7-new-handsets)

I ask though, who grips their phone that tight, in any situation. I don't. If I grip my iPhone 2g like an ape guess what, I lose bars. In fact, I've gotten it down to 1 bar.

What I'm really trying to find out is, If I were to hold ip4 with my right hand, placing my pinky lightly over the "bridge", will I lose reception? I Haven't seen a phone that does that.

 

[Ferris23]

There's a big difference between reading others opinions, and actually owning a Captivate.*



Display: it's not possible to accurately compare these two in the store. Why? Because they come preset at different levels of brightness with the iPhone cranked up higher. Most AT&T reps don't even know how to increase brightness on Android phones.*

Umm, the reps don't know how to change brightness but I do. I work in IT, I'm not an idiot with electronics. I spent 2 hours with the damn thing and changed settings all over the place including brightness, it's a beautiful screen, but it has a nasty grid pattern that fails in comparison to the iPhone 4. Brightness was not the issue, the pentile type display was. It's a preference, I prefer clarity over contrast Not to mention the other image anomalies I could easily see on that screen

The Android forums say: ......

Android forums are like any other forum. Filled with impatient users who refuse to spend the time to _learn_ the *Android OS. Android is not the same as the iPhone OS. If you're not willing to learn something new it's easy to condemn it. Personally, I invested the time to learn it, and the result is I have _ no_ problems with Android.*

The problems people are experiencing pretty much have nothing to do with the OS

This is wrong. As a long time AT&T customer who buys four or more new phones each year, I can buy & exchange for the same or different model as many times as I want.*

Don't believe it? Do your own research. It's easy just go to any carriers site. It's all explained there.*

I asked 2 AT&T corporate store managers, they have a one time buyers remorse policy, you have gotten lucky or are getting special treatment as a long time customer and frequent buyer of cell phones

You may exchange equipment one time within 30 days from the date the original equipment was purchased or shipped. If (1) the purchase price of the original equipment is reduced in connection with a new activation or upgrade and a Service Commitment and (2) the new (exchanged) equipment has a different Early Termination Fee associated with it than the original equipment, you will be required to sign a new agreement. The effective date of the new agreement will be the date the new agreement is signed and your Service Commitment will restart from that date. However, your service activation date will not change for any purpose, including, but not limited to, calculating any early termination fees you may be obligated to pay (See Service Cancellation below).

http://www.wireless.att.com/cell-phone-service/legal/return-policy.jsp


Check your facts.

.

No interest in really going on with you, mainly because I like the Captivate, I wish I liked it more because I wanted to buy it. Moreover because you seem to ignore the facts and just repeat the same thing, that you own the phone so whatever anyone else says is wrong? Please.


But to say because you own it and don't have problems, and those who do have problems are just not taking the time to learn Android, is pretty ridiculous.

 

[whsbuss]

Come on guys..... all phones have problems. Its the nature of the beast. And because its "mobile" by definition, users experience different problems depending on where they are.

I've played with the captivate and found it to operate okay. Love how you can customize it but I don't like Samsung's implementation of the OS. While the Super AMOLED screen produces great blacks, the apps don't display good color contrast because of the blacks.

I'm a very heavy Google users so android more than meets my needs. But I have an iPhone which IMO is a better experience.

 

[Ferris23]

Come on guys..... all phones have problems. Its the nature of the beast. And because its "mobile" by definition, users experience different problems depending on where they are.

I've played with the captivate and found it to operate okay. Love how you can customize it but I don't like Samsung's implementation of the OS. While the Super AMOLED screen produces great blacks, the apps don't display good color contrast because of the blacks.

I'm a very heavy Google users so android more than meets my needs. But I have an iPhone which IMO is a better experience.

I wasn't looking to argue, I was just informing the OP of the problems that SOME people have with the phone. The same problems that I took heed to when considering buying the Captivate.

Then this guy comes in here and calls me a liar because his phone works fine and states that there are no problems with the Captivate simply because his is fine, which of course is not true and pretty much absurd.

2 things that piss me off

1) Calling me a liar

2) Spreading BS mis information


I think it's great he has no problems, but let's not just cover up the information that's out there. Like a random shut down is because someone is new to Android.

Oh and I suppose this guy is lying too?

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/974227/